January Program: Full annual cycle research in the birds of Ohio

Conservation Spotlight: Eddie Boyd, a recent graduate of Upper Arlington High School, just completed a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail. His journey took 141 days and he hiked 2,189 miles.


Full annual cycle research in the birds of Ohio by Christopher Tonra, PhD, Assistant Professor of Avian Wildlife Ecology, School of Environment and Natural Resources, The Ohio State University Very few studies of vertebrate wildlife ecology examine more than one stage of the annual cycle, and even fewer have tried to elucidate how different stages interact with one another.

tonra

This bias in vertebrate ecology has limited our understanding of the nature of population dynamics and moving beyond it is critical to effectively managing and conserving populations. Chris’s research seeks to fill in these gaps in our understanding of wildlife populations with a particular focus on birds.

He will present results from research on Neotropical migratory birds, examining how different stages of the annual cycle interact physiologically within individuals and discuss how he continues to expand his research program here in Ohio. Chris Tonra grew up in Long Island NY and started birding at 12 when a Red-bellied Woodpecker nested outside his window.

He has a degree in anthropology from SUNY Albany, followed by a masters in wildlife ecology from Humboldt State in California. After his PhD at University of Maine/SMBC, he completed a post-doc with the Smithsonian. He started at OSU as Assistant Professor of Avian Wildlife Ecology in 2014. He is an avid bike commuter, gardener, cook, dabbles in carpentry.

Scroll to Top